Summoning the Storm
by Vana Jedi
Summary: When a young Thor disobeys Odin's orders and doesn't watch him, Loki decides to experiment with a metal object and magic outside in the middle of a storm.


**Summoning the Storm**

**Summary: While they are children, a young Thor disobeys Odin's commands and forgets to watch Loki. Loki takes the oppurtunity to do something possibly dangerous in a desperate attempt to prove Thor wrong—or just experiment. Who can tell with Loki?**

"I do what I _want_, Thor!"

Thor stared at his younger brother. "No."

Loki pouted, rain dripping down his face. "What do you care?"

"Because," Thor offered, "I'm your brother and I actually happen to care about you. Also, metal objects are not meant to be held outside during a thunderstorm."

"Which you 'summoned'," Loki complained. "And what if it was a nonconductive metal?"

This confused Thor. "_Are_ there any? And what does nonconductive mean?"

"Something that doesn't conduct electricity!" The young Asgardian paced back and forth. "And if you can summon lightning, then I can too with a metal object."

"You'll be killed."

Loki was on a mission and there was no stopping him. He had been determined to prove that it was possible to replicate Thor's lightning. The tools that Loki had chosen to try and replicate was a piece of metal and his magic. Needless to say, neither of these were enough to replicate Thor's trick, and neither of these were enough to protect him should the lightning choose to strike the piece of metal.

Frigga had went to talk to Loki, and _mostly_ dissuaded him from trying this suicide mission.

Unfortunately, for Loki "mostly" wasn't enough. And now that Odin and Frigga had left to welcome Thor and Loki's cousins, Frey and Freyja, to Asgard, Loki had taken it as an test his theory.

Odin's eldest sighed and pushed Loki's hair out of his face. "Come on, let's go in."

"Uh-uh." Loki shook his head adamantly. "You have to promise."

Thor sighed. "Promise to what, Loki?"

Loki held up the toasting fork he had been experimenting with. "I give this to you and we go in, if you prove that you_ can_ summon lightning better than I can by, when it's a clear day, summoning a storm."

There was a pause as Thor considered. He hadn't summoned _this_ storm, and he didn't think he'd be able to manage one of this magnitude. It was a really bad storm as well, and he was worried for _both_ of their safety if they didn't get inside soon.

A particularly large strike of lightning that hit too close for comfort made up his mind.

He took the fork from Loki. "I swear on the roots of Yggdrasil."

His young brother appeared satisfied. "Then let us meet Frey and Freyja." Loki trotted to the door.

Thor stayed outside a little bit longer. This storm was tremendous.

He allowed himself to drift off into one of his favorite fantasies—focusing Mjolnir's power enough to wipe out Jotunheim and destroy the frost giants.

He'd never voiced this fantasy aloud. He had a feeling that his father might not like it. _Course he will_, Thor reckoned. _He hates the Jotuns, right?_

Then again, Odin was also trying to keep peace with them. Thor thought that it would honestly be better if they were just all wiped out.

"_Thor_!" Loki whined. "Come _on_!"

Thor shook his head and jumped with an especially loud clap of thunder. He hurried over to Loki. "You're wet."

"So are _you_," Loki defended. "If there wasn't a storm we wouldn't be." He glared at Thor.

Thor was about to protest that he _hadn't_ summoned the storm and was therefore undeserving of Loki's blame, but if his brother thought that he had the power to summon _this_ storm—well, who was Thor to prove him wrong?

"Remember your promise," Loki hissed as they hurried off to their rooms to get changed in preparation for their cousins' arrival.

"I will," Thor muttered, then went off to try and camouflage the fact that he had been outside, just like Odin told him not to.

"_Thor?"_

"_Yes, Father?"_

"_Frigga and I are leaving to greet your cousins now. Don't go outside."_

"_Why not? I love thunderstorms!"_

"_Thor, look outside. It's too dangerous. Lightning is striking all around and the wind is strong enough to fell trees."_

"_Okay, Father. Whatever you say…"_

"_Don't let Loki go outside either."_

"_He's desperate to prove me wrong."_

"_Your mother has calmed him down enough. I think he can wait until a less severe storm to experiment with storm summoning magic, don't you? Still, take care of him while we're away. It'll only be a few hours."_

"_Alright!"_

But Thor _hadn't_ taken care of Loki. He had left Loki in the library and went off to spar with the fighting dummies. He'd only discovered Loki was missing after two hours.

If his little brother had continued with his foolhardy quest to prove Thor wrong (or just experiment. Thor suspected that this might be the actual reason), then Thor might not have been able to get to him in time and there would be no Loki—just the smell of ozone.

Thor shuddered and wrapped his arm around a pillow sitting by him, pressing it to his stomach to quell the feeling of nausea.

He changed clothes and dried his hair the best he could—he could always pass the dampness of as a bath—and went into the library to wait for Loki.

"Thor?"

Thor dropped the book that he had idlly picked up on the floor, ignoring Loki's wince as it landed with a heavy thump.

"You have to be careful with those!" protested the young child. "They don't regrow their spines, or magically straighten out their pages." He hurried to the book and picked it up, putting it back in its proper place.

"I apologise."

"You'd _better_. That's my favorite."

"Aren't you a little young to be reading it? It has a lot of big words."

Loki's resentful glare made Thor remember how much his brother hated to be patronised. "Again, I apologise."

"Hmm. What are you doing in the library?"

"To apologise."

Loki couldn't help a smirk. "That's the third time today."

"Yes." Thor patted the chair by him and smiled when Loki clambered into it. "I was supposed to watch you."

"I was fine."

Thor's astounded look made Loki backpedal. "Why wasn't I fine, Thor?"

Thor tapped Loki's head. "For all that you know, you honestly didn't guess that it wasn't a smart idea to be outside holding a metal object in a thunderstorm?"

Loki squirmed deeper into the thick cushion as though to hide himself. "_You_ didn't."

"I'm the god of thunder," Thor said proudly. "I don't _need _to know."

"Still no excuse for not knowing till Father told you to not let me outside when I first wanted to."

He blinked. "You were listening?"

"You were talking loudly."

"Then if you heard—" Thor sighed, exasperated, "why did you do it?"

"I figured it wouldn't hit me." Loki smirked at Thor's expression.

Thor pulled Loki out of the chair and hugged him, ignoring Loki's struggles and yelps of indignation. "Don't do that again! You scared me!"

Loki hummed in laughter. "Now you sound like Mother."

"Maybe." Thor let Loki go and held him by his shoulders. "Now we go meet Mother and Father. They'll be back soon."

"And Frey and Freyja." Loki grimaced.

"What's wrong with them?"

"Freyja treats me like I'm a child." He squirmed. "I _hate_ that."

Thor couldn't help laughing. "You _are_ a child, Loki!"

"Not in spirit!

"Come on." Thor led Loki out of the library, then stopped and took him by the shoulders again. "I've promised to show you how I summon a storm. Will you promise something?"

A sigh. "Depends on what it is."

"It's not much," Thor promised.

"Fine."

"Don't tell Mother and Father."

Loki was surprised by this simple request. "I wasn't planning to."

"Good." Thor hugged him again. "Now we go and pretend to be happy about seeing our cousins."

"I'm not pretending!" Loki shrieked. "I will hate them and be proud of it!"

"Don't hate them. Father said—"

His brother spun on him, a childish fury blazing in his eyes. "I do what I _want_, Thor!"


End file.
